Freedom and Islam: Compatible or Contradictory?

In this great country one of our most cherished freedoms is freedom of religion and we Americans go the extra mile in extending that freedom to others. We have even gone so far as to honor the Muslim religion of those who destroyed the World Trade Center murdering 3000 Americans and then partied in the streets around the world. The Muslims we are so careful not to offend do not reciprocate our respect, however. They believe that any individual who exercises religious freedom by converting to or practicing any religion other than Islam merits death.

Just as the Christian religion is divided into Catholic and Protestant branches, the Muslim religion is divided into branches one called Shia and the other Sunni. Even though some insist that there is a giant chasm between the theological beliefs of the two Muslim branches, in reality they are merely twin ruts in the same old dirt road. Their ultimate goal is the same, converting the entire world to Islam.

“Omar Ahmad, founder of the ‘moderate’ Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said this: ‘Islam isn’t in America to be equal to any other faith, but to become dominant … the only accepted religion on earth’.” In short, Muslims do not believe in or practice any form of religious freedom.

At the same time Muslims are going out of their way to debase and denigrate other religions and cultures, they are quick to claim that Islam is the world’s only true religion and that those who embrace other religions are grossly deceived. This lack of respect for and insensitivity toward the worth of other religions contributes to the culture of radical Muslim’s terrorist violence, murder, and suicide bombings. One Muslim terrorist recently said, “If I were to hijack a bus in Haifa, it would be for the specific purpose of killing civilians.”

While Muslims dangerously threaten those who practice other religions, Christians in America go to great lengths to keep from offending radical, militant Muslims. This is surprising since nearly all the terrorists who have attacked our nation during the last half of the century have come from Islamic backgrounds. Yet we feel it is politically incorrect to equate Islam with terrorism. Only slowly and recently have Americans begun to realize that while it is possible to love and respect individual Muslims, it is not easy to love and respect Islam.

Very few Muslims claim to be moderate and, even in a muted way, publicly criticize the terrorist actions of radical Islamic groups. There has been no general outcry of condemnation of radical Muslim terrorism throughout the Islamic world or in the United States. In fact, most Muslims have been scrupulous in their efforts to hide the moderation they supposedly have for Muslim acts of terrorism. “To shed the blood of the infidels – even children – is reason enough to party in the streets,” appears to be the rallying cry of those of the Muslim faith.

And when the muted protests and criticisms of so-called Muslim moderates come, they are hard to accept as real displays of public disgust or anger. Since the Koran approves of lying for the sake of Islam, these so-called moderate Muslim protests could be nothing more than strategically placed lies planted as part of a scheme to divert the public’s attention from what is really happening toward what they want the public to think is happening.

No other religion encourages, rewards, and condones the wanton slaughter of the defenseless as does Islam, which also abhors freedom of religion and speech. Its actions are patterned more on the Mafia than on freedom, except that the Mafia seldom kills innocents without a good reason.

Militant Islamists seem to avoid engaging military forces that are armed and trained to fight back on equal terms. Instead they prey on, maim and kill unarmed women and children, then celebrate the massacres in the streets as if they were great and honorable military victories. Shouldn’t America’s freedoms be prized and guarded rather than extended to those who would trample them under foot?